Getting Permanent Residency
U.S. citizens marry over 450,000 foreign nationals each year and petition for them to get green cards (or to have permanent resident status). Because spouses are considered immediate relatives under immigration laws, there is no limit to the number of green cards given to this category of immigrants and there is no waiting period beyond the time it takes to complete the application process.
Eligibility
Anyone who marries a U.S. citizen can petition for a green card through marriage. Once the couple is actually married, both spouses petition for an adjustment of status to that of a Permanent Resident for the immigrant spouse, but the green card is conditional.
The conditional status is good for two years and before the two year anniversary of the green card, the couple can petition for conditions to be removed. 90 days before the expiration of the permanent resident card, an immigrant should apply to have the conditions removed.
Process and Marriage Interview
As the expiration date of the conditional green card approaches, the citizen spouse must file a petition on behalf of the immigrant spouse. Form I-175 is the petition to have conditions removed. Once removed, the immigrant spouse is granted a green card and his/her permanent status has no expiration date. It is through the petition process after two years of marriage that U.S. immigration officials will determine whether the marriage was made in good faith, or simply for the purpose of immigration. The following documents will help prove the married couple lived together for the two years since the marriage:
- Shared financial/banking statements
- Shared credit card statements
- Shared contracts for an apartment or a house
- Shared insurance policies
- Sworn statements from people who know you both and who can swear you were together as a married couple for two years
The marriage interview gives the immigration official an opportunity to see the couple interact and to personally judge the credibility of the marriage.
Exceptions
If an immigrant marries and before the conditional status is lifted, is divorced, (and was abused by the citizen spouse), or if the spouse died before the two year anniversary, the immigrant spouse can apply for a waiver of the spouse’s petition anytime before. The waiver is granted on a case by case basis and is not guaranteed.
